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Author Notes: When I lived in San Francisco, one of my housemates came from a Spanish & Mexican family. He had a little book, kept tucked away, of his grandmother’s recipes written in Spanish (which, at the time, I did not know at all). After he realized I had memorized his Huevos Rancheros from watching, I was banned from the kitchen whenever he was making one of the magic recipes from the little book! [In case you were wondering, Initially, I didn’t know he was hoarding them.]

Each year, I would go back to the Midwest for my family Christmas and I brought this dish with me. It was a huge hit and became one of the two dishes always requested for the holiday. Several years have passed & my parents are gone. I’ve altered the dish a little, but this still in the top few for holiday breakfast. It’s super tasty, fun & colorful. I've noted variations in the sections below.
—Queen of Spoons

Serves 8+

Ranchero Sauce

4 bacon slices, cut into 1/2" lardons

1 large sweet onion, 1/2" dice

1 small green bell pepper, seeded, in small dice

1 jalapeno, seeded, in small dice

1 clove garlic, minced

1teaspoon ancho chile powder

4-8ounces ham cut into ½” pieces

3pounds plum tomatoes, cut into ½” dice, with juice

salt & pepper to taste

cayenne pepper and/or hot pepper sauce (Cholula preferred) to taste

Place bacon in large, heavy bottomed saucepan over medium-high heat. Cook down until light golden brown.

Notes:
- This is not intended to be a super hot sauce. It is more smoky, slightly spicy, with hint of sweet & heat. If tastes for spicy heat vary in your group, simply omit cayenne & hold hot sauce for addition at the table.
- To make vegetarian, increase the onions & peppers a bit & use a small amount of canned chipotle, instead of meat, for a bit of smoky flavor. I like the bacon/ham sauce a lot. So, if I have vegetarian guests, I split the sauce into two pots one with & one without.

Huevos, Tortillas & Toppings

8 eggs

8 fresh corn tortillas

Vegetable oil for frying (e.g. canola)

Cheese for topping - shredded cheddar or crumbled queso fresco

sour cream for topping

Optional garnish - fresh chopped cilantro, sliced avocado

Prepare poached eggs in vinegared water, using your favorite method. Pull from water and set aside on paper towels over a cooling rack.

Place about 1” of oil in cast iron (or similar heavy) skillet. Heat to ~375. Quickly fry each tortilla, turning once until crisp & golden. Immediately place on cooling rack above old newspaper & lightly salt while hot.

To plate: Place two tortillas (will slightly overlap) side by side on each plate. Place egg in center of each tortilla. Generously spoon sauce over each egg. Top with cheese & dollop of sour cream.

Serve Immediately.

Notes:
- I always make extra tortillas while the oil is hot. With extra sauce, people can make ‘eggless’ versions for seconds. Or later, it’s easy to reheat them on lowest toast setting in toaster oven for leftovers.
- You can plate them prettily. But, the family seems to enjoy if all the toppings are added to individual taste at the table.